Tampa's Women's Soccer Tournament Run Comes to An End
 |
Tampa fell to host Armstrong Atlantic 2-1 in Sunday's NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship quarterfinal to end its impressive postseason run.
QUARTERFINAL RECAP
Tampa's postseason run came to an end in the NCAA DII Women's Soccer Championship quarterfinals on Sunday. The Spartans fell 2-1 to host Armstrong Atlantic in Savannah, Ga.
The Pirates came out firing, with Morgan Mitchell scoring their first goal just three minutes into the contest. Brittan Spence continued her impressive postseason performance, converting a penalty kick in the 34th minute to tie things at 1-1. Mitchell would strike again for Armstrong Atlantic in the 63rd minute, heading in what proved to be the game-winner.
AASU fielded a staunch defense, holding Tampa to a single shot on goal compared to eight for the Pirates. UT's Emelie Karstrom made a valiant effort in goal, making six saves to keep the Spartans in the contest.
THIRD ROUND RECAP
Tampa and Lynn traveled all the way to Savannah, Ga., to face off in a tough battle between a pair of Sunshine State foes. After 100 minutes of scoreless action, UT's Brittan Spence delivered a header that sent the Spartans into the NCAA quarterfinals with a 1-0 win. Just 51 second into the second OT period, Spence headed in a pass from Cina Salemi to give UT the South Region Championship.
The Spartans will face host Armstrong Atlantic, winner of the Southeast Region, on Sunday at 1 p.m. The winner will advance to the NCAA DII semifinals in Pensacola.
SECOND ROUND RECAP
Sunday's scene in Winter Park was eerily similar to last Sunday's SSC Soccer Championship final in Saint Leo. Once again, Tampa knocked off a higher-seeded Rollins team by a 2-0 tally. This time, the win took place on the Tars' home field. After a scoreless first half, the Spartans scored their first goal in the 56th minute. Brittan Spence headed in a free kick from Shannon Walisch for the tally. UT would ice the match in the 69th minute when Lauren Moore scored off a Marta Bertsos corner kick.
The upsets continued in Saint Leo, where Lynn stunned the top-seeded Lions 2-1. Senior Melissa Ortiz tallied both of the Fighting Knights' goals. The fiesty squad struck early, with Ortiz taking a pass from Carolyn Hartman and driving in a goal in the 10th minute. She tallied what proved to be the game-winner in the 84th minute. Kirstie Schults blasted a shot that rebounded off the goal post, and Ortiz was there to send it home with the keeper drawn away from the net.
The Lions launched an offensive from there, trying to close the 2-0 gap. Francesca Williams hit a shot from the top right corner of the box to cut SLU's deficit to 2-1 in the 87th minute, but that was as close as the Lions would get before time expired.
With those matches in the books, Lynn and Tampa will meet in the South Region Championship on Friday, Nov. 18.
FIRST ROUND RECAP
Lynn knocked off Florida Tech 1-0 in opening-round action at Saint Leo on Friday to stay alive in the NCAA tournament. The Panthers dominated play with eight shots on goal compared to just two for the Fighting Knights, but Lynn made made the most of its opportunities. Lauren Impey scored the game-winner for Lynn in the 52nd minute. LU freshman goalkeeper Meghan Dolan came up huge with eight saves to preserve the shutout for the Knights. With the win, Lynn advances to face host Saint Leo in second-round action at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
In Winter Park, Tampa battled North Alabama to a scoreless tie until the 108th minute. That's when Lauren Moore headed in a corner kick from Courtney Peffley to propel to Spartans into Sunday's second round where they will meet host Rollins at noon. UT keeper Emelie Karstrom made four saves to help preserve the Spartan shutout.
PREVIEW
The NCAA unveiled the 48-team field for the 2011 NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship on Tuesday evening, and five SSC schools will be among the participants.
Saint Leo and Rollins were tabbed as the top two seeds in the South Region and will serve as hosts for first and second-round games on Friday, Nov. 11, and Sunday, Nov. 13.
Top-seeded Saint Leo will host No. 4 Florida Tech and No. 5 Lynn. The Lions will receive a first-round bye, while familiar foes Tech and Lynn will face off in opening-round competition on Friday at 1 p.m. The teams last met in the SSC regular-season on Oct. 22, with the Panthers winning 2-1 over the Fighting Knights.
The winner of the Florida Tech/Lynn match will face host Saint Leo on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Second-seeded Rollins will host the other half of the bracket and will be joined in Winter Park by No. 3 Tampa and No. 6 North Alabama. The Tars will also enjoy a first-round bye.
Tampa and UNA will tangle in the opening round at 5 p.m. on Friday. The winner will meet Rollins in round two at noon on Sunday.
